Innovative MIT Researchers Ariel Furst and Fan Wang Honored with NIH Awards

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) has recently granted funding to two innovative researchers, Ariel Furst and Fan Wang, under its High-Risk, High-Reward Research program. This initiative awarded 85 grants to support exceptionally creative scientists dedicated to pioneering behavioral and biomedical research.

Innovative Awards Empower Early-Career Researchers

Ariel Furst is honored with the NIH Director’s New Innovator Award, which has been fostering groundbreaking research since 2007. This award is designated for early-career investigators who are within ten years of completing their final degree or clinical residency and who have not yet secured a significant NIH grant.

As the Paul M. Cook Career Development Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, Furst is committed to developing technologies that enhance human and environmental health by promoting equitable access to essential resources. Her research focuses on transformative solutions aimed at addressing challenges in healthcare and sustainability by leveraging the unique capabilities of biological molecules and cells. Furst is also a strong advocate for STEM outreach, striving to increase the involvement of underrepresented groups in engineering fields.

After earning her PhD at Caltech, where she pioneered noninvasive diagnostic methods for colorectal cancer, Furst served as an A. O. Beckman Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, where she created sensors to detect environmental pollutants. In recognition of her mentorship, she received the MIT UROP Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award in 2022 and was honored as a 2023 Marion Milligan Mason Awardee. Additionally, she is a CIFAR Azrieli Global Scholar focusing on Bio-Inspired Solar Energy and a co-founder of Seia Bio, a regenerative agriculture company.

Fan Wang’s Groundbreaking Neuroscience Research

Fan Wang has been awarded the Pioneer Award, which encourages researchers at all stages of their careers to explore novel directions in the biomedical and behavioral sciences since its inception in 2004.

Wang, a professor in the Department of Brain and Cognitive Sciences and an investigator at the McGovern Institute for Brain Research, is dedicated to unraveling the neural circuit mechanisms that influence bodily sensations such as touch, pain, and posture. Her lab’s goal is to develop a comprehensive understanding of the sensation-perception-action process to discover improved treatments for conditions like chronic pain, addiction, and movement disorders. Utilizing genetic, viral, and large-scale electrophysiology techniques, Wang’s research aims for significant breakthroughs.

Wang obtained her PhD from Columbia University, where she worked under Professor Richard Axel. She completed her postdoctoral research at Stanford University with Mark Tessier-Lavigne before joining Duke University as faculty in 2003. She was later named the Morris N. Broad Distinguished Professor of Neurobiology at Duke University School of Medicine and joined MIT’s faculty in January 2023.

Significance of the NIH High-Risk, High-Reward Program

The High-Risk, High-Reward Research program is supported by the NIH Common Fund, which funds a variety of high-impact initiatives that span across NIH Institutes and Centers.

“The HRHR program is vital for innovation at NIH, enabling transformational research that advances biomedical and behavioral science,” stated Robert W. Eisinger, acting director of the Division of Program Coordination, Planning, and Strategic Initiatives that oversees the NIH Common Fund. “These awards align with our mission to support science with the potential for significant and widespread impact.”

In 2023 alone, NIH issued eight Pioneer Awards, 58 New Innovator Awards, six Transformative Research Awards, and 13 Early Independence Awards. Funding for these awards comes from various NIH entities including the National Institute of General Medical Sciences, National Institute of Mental Health, National Library of Medicine, National Institute on Aging, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, and the Office of Dietary Supplements.